gullixson



Aug. 11, 1959 H. R. GULLIXSON COMBINATION RECORD HOLDER AND RECORD LOCATOR Filed March 29. 1957 INVENTOR v///m'oLo R. Gazuxsaw k ln @an MMJ I ATTORNEYS United States Patent 6 2,899,075 iI'DNIEI'NA'riON HOLDER nE-CoR-n LoeAroR Harold R. Gullixson, Greensboro, Appucafiiin Match 29, 1957, Serial No. 649,499 12 Claims. (Cl. 211-40 The present invention relates to a locator device for use inthe fi-lingof articles in an article holder and, more particularly, to a locator device for use with article holders of the type capable of, storing a plurality of flat articles such as, disk-shaped phonograph records,- rectangularly-shaped photograph slides or the like.

The present application is a continuation-in-part of my copending application, Serial No. 599,762, filed July 24, 1956,- and entitled Device for Holding Flat Articles or the Like. In my aforementioned application, Serial No. 599,762; a device for storing flat articles individually of each other is disclosed and claimed. The details of thedescription of the article holder which appear in my aforementioned application is not fully repeated herein, it being understood that such details also form a part of the present disclosure.

In my aforementioned application, Serial No. 599,762, the article holder is disclosed as being utilized for storage of a plurality of flat articles, the articles being individually supported in the article holder. Since the articles stored in the article holder have substantially the same configuration, difiiculty is encountered by the user of the article holder indetermining which article is filed at a particular place in the article holder. In other words, where the article holder is used for such articles as'phonograph records, the records when filed are in close relationship to one another and their titles are not visible to the user. To obviate this ditficulty in the use of such article holder s or storage devices, the present invention contemplates the provision of means whereby individual articles filed in the article holder may be conveniently and quickly located.

An object of the present invention is to provide a locator device for use with article holders whereby the articles maybe filed in a'particularjposition in the article holder and then their position may be determinedquickly in the location of a particular article previously filed.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an article locator device which may be conveniently stored in an article holder, the device being capable of removal from the article holder so that the user can conveniently utilize it for inserting or removing articles from the-article holder.

A still further object of the present invention is to provide an article locator device having a surface thereon capable of accepting pencil or ink, the surface being such that the pencil or ink indicia may be easily removed.

A further object of the present invention is to provide an article locator device having a plurality of indicia receiving surfaces thereon for receiving titles of a plurality of articles, the indicia receiving surfaces being separated from one another so as to make the changing of titles easier and quicker.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide an article locator device which is disk-shaped, similar to that of a phonograph record, the article locator device being flexible and made of a weatherproof mateiial so that it can withstand long continuous use.

, 2,899,075 Pate" ted Aug- 11.

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Another object of; the present invention is to provide a record locator device molded in the shape of a phonograph record from a non-brittle plastic material, the device being provided with meansto prevent warping when standing vertically on edge for long periods of time.

A still further object of the present invention is to provide an article locator device used in combination withan article holder for substantially flat articles, the article locator device. being shaped substantially similar to the articles storedingthe article holder and capable of being carried by the article holder in a manner similar to the articles-storedtherein. 7,

Still another object of the present invention is the provision of an article holder incombinationwith an article locator device, the locator device providing a new and ineipensive means; of filing articles and finding articles whenfil ed. H I, v

A still further objectof the present invention is the provision of a device for indexing articles in a holder, the'deviee j being easy and inexpensive to manufacture and simple to use. p

These and other objects and advantages of the present inventioriwill appear more vfully in the following specification, claims and drawings, in which: Figure l discloses aside elevational view of the article locator device used in combination with the article holder, the article holder shown holdinga single article but being capable of holding a plurality of articles. I

Figure 2 is a side elevational view of the article locator device of the present iiiventio n I Figure 3 is a top plan view of the article holder of Figure l on a reduced scale, the article holder being disclosed without the article locator device or articles rsdh e n- V, V

Figure 4 is an; enlarged fragmentary perspective view of the article locator deviceof Figure 2, and

Figure 5 is a n enlarged sectional view of the article locator device of the present invention, taken on the line 5- -5 of Figure 2. V H p I Referring new t6 the drawings wherein like character or reference numerals represent like or similar parts, the present invention includes a locator device generally designated by the numeral 10 and an article holder or s'tjorag e dvice generally designated by the numeral 12. The article holder 12 is a spool-shaped device having an upper plate element- 14 and a spaced lower plate element connected together by a central post 18. upp 'rana lower plate elements 14 and 16, respectively, are providedwith grooves 20 in their opposed surfaces, the grooves r the; upper plate being aligned with the grooves 20 of the lower plate so that an article 22, sucli as a phonograph record or the like, can be inserted between a pair of aligned grooves and retained on its edges. The details of the structure of the article receiving grooves .20 andthe means for holding articles in position within the grooves is disclosed fully in my aforementioned application, Serial No. 599,762, and will not berepeated herein. I y) I the structure of the article holder 12 is shown in the present application beingcapable of storing a plurality "o ffla't disk-shaped articles such as phonograph records, "it is to be understood that the articles stored may be flat articles that are rectangular in shape, se n as photographic slides "or the like, disclosed in my aforementioned application, Serial No. 599,762. Further, the plate elements 14 and 16 are shown as being disks'hap'e'd 'sothat the articles 22 storedin the aligned article re'c iviaggroeves 20 radiate .fro rnan axis of the article holder '12. newevergtae plates 14 and 16 may be of other shapes such as disclosed in my aforementioned application, No. 599,762, so long as the article receiiiing gfooves st'ore the ar'ticles'in closely spaced relationship with each other where titles printed on the surfaces of the articles is not visible to the user.

Generally, the article holder or storage device of the present invention s capable of storing a plurality of articles 22 in closely spaced relationship to each other, and the article locator device is provided for locating a particular article when stored or for locating a position to store a particular article. In the present invention, the upper disk element 14 is provided with suitable indicia 24 on its upper surface, the indicia identifying each of the article receiving grooves 20. The article locator device 10 is of such a shape that its configuration is substantially similar tothe configuration of the article 22 being stored and is capable of itself being stored in one pair of the aligned article receiving grooves 20.

The article locator device 10 is provided with indicia 26 thereon corresponding to the position identifying indicia 24 on the upper disk 14 of the article holder 12. The indicia 24 on the article holder 12 and the indicia 26 on the article locator device 10 may be characters such as numbers, letters of the alphabet, or the like. A radially extending space 28 is provided beside each of the characters 26 on the article locator device 10, the space being adapted to receive the title of the particular article stored in the article holder 12. When articles such as phonograph records are stored, a blank record made of anodized aluminum may be used, the blank record having suitable numbers thereon and spaces on which to write the title of the records stored in the article holder. The phonograph records are then stored in the corresponding numbered grooves on the article holder so that when the user desires a particular record he merely looks for the title on the anodized index record and then to the number beside the same and then goes to that particular groove number of the article holder. Anodizing the locator device 10 when it is made of aluminum, causes surface of the device to be capable of receiving or removing titles made by pen or pencil.

While the article locator device 10 may be made of anodized aluminum or the like, it is preferably made of a non-brittle plastic, such as polystyrene or the like.

The locator device 10 may be molded from the high impact polystyrene, and the molds used having their surfaces vapor blasted or peened so that a microscopic mat surface is provided in the spaces 28. By providing a microscopic mat surface on the spaces 28, the locator device will accept pencil or ink and the pencil or ink may be erased with ease when desired. The use of a nonbrittle plastic, such as high impact polystyrene, gives the locator device 10 weatherproof characteristics and permits the locator device to be flexible yet substantially rigid. The locator device 10 when formed in the shape of a phonograph record, as shown in the drawings, is able to be stored verticallyv on its peripheral edge and will not warp.

In more detail, the record locator device 10 is constructed as a substantially flat element of the same configuration as the article 22 held by the article holder 12. When the article locator device 10,is molded from a nonbrittle plastic material, in the shape of a phonograph record, it is provided with a center aperture 30 which provides easy handling of the device by inserting a finger through the aperture and a thumb on its peripheral edge 32. This eliminates the fingers being moved across the spaces 28 and blurring the titles written or printed therein.

The title receiving spaces 28 are formed in the locator device by providing spaced radially extending ridges or ribs 34, as best shown in Figure 4. A circumferential ridge or rib '36 about the periphery of the article locator device connects the outer ends of the spaced radial ridges 34. The inner ends of the adjacent ridges 34 are connected by a ridge 38 on the surface of the locator device 10, the ridge 38 being arrow-shaped, as indicated at 39 in Figure 4,' soas to point to one of the characters or numbers 26 adjacent the space 28. As is now evident, the spaces 28 are provided with boundaries formed by the adjacent ridges 34, the circumferential ridge 36 and the connecting ridge 38. The ridges 34, 36 and 38 provide a guide when the title of a particular article is inserted in the spaces 28 by pen or pencil. Further, the ridges provide an erasure guide when it is desired to change the title in a particular space 28 thereby eliminating the possibility of erasing an adjacent title in an adjacent space 28.

It will be noted that the radially extending title receiving spaces 28 of the disk-shaped element 10 are provided outwardly of the numbers 26. By providing the numbers 26 on the locator device 10 inwardly of the spaces, more area on the planar surface of the locator device is provided for inserting the titles in the spaces. In addition, provision of the numbers 26 radially inwardly of the spaces 28 groups the numbers closer together so that a particular number can be quickly spotted and by sight with a particular space.

Only one planar surface of the disk shaped article 10- cator device 10 is disclosed in the drawings as having indexing means on its surface, it being understood that the other side of the article locator device may be formed 'in exactly the same manner so as to have spaces for receiving titles of articles as well as numbers or characters 26 aligned with each of the spaces. The total number of spaces 28 provided on the substantially planar surfaces of the locator device 10 should be equal to the number of aligned article receiving grooves 20 of the article holder 12.

Referring now to Figure 5, the disk-shaped locator device 10, when molded of a high impact plastic such as polystyrene, is provided with an annular ridge or rib 40 adjacent the aperture 30. The ridge or rib 40 makes the center portion of the disk-shaped locator device substantially thicker at the hub than at the area where the title receiving spaces are. By providing the annular ridge 40 on the locator device, the warping tendency from cold flow and shrinkage characteristics of polystyrene is reduced. The radially extending ridges 34 also assist in preventing the locator device 10 from Warping due to cold flow and shrinkage. Consequently, the device 10 may be stored in the article holder 12 for long periods of time without the danger of it becoming permanently Warped.

Although the disk-shaped locator device 10 is shown removably supported in the article receiving grooves 20 of the article holder 12, it will be understood that the device 16 may be supported on the fiat upper surface of the upper plate element 14. When supported on the upper surfaces of the plate element 14, the handle or knob 42 may be replaced by a pin having a diameter equal to or less than the aperture 30 in the disk-shaped locator device.

The terminology used in this specification is for the purpose of description and not limitation, the scope of the invention being defined in the claims.

I claim:

1. An article locator device for use in filing flat diskshaped articles such as phonograph records in an article holder: said article locator device being disk-shaped, said locator device also being substantially fiat and having planar surfaces adapted to receive indicia, a plurality of spaced radially extending ridges on at least one of said planar surfaces, the surface between said ridges defining spaces for receiving indicia made by pencil or ink and identifying titles of articles filed in said holder and the ridges providing an erasure guide to facilitate removal of the title identifying indicia, and indicia associated with each of the spaces between adjacent ridges for identifying positions of articles in said holder.

2. An article locator device of the character described in claim 1, wherein said indicia associated with each of the spaces defined by adjacent ridges for identifying a position of the articles in said article holder includes characters molded on said disk-shaped locator device and positioned radially inwardly of said spaces.

3. An article locator device for use in filing disk-shaped articles such as phonograph records or the like in an article holder: said article locator device being disk-shaped and substantially flat having planar surfaces adapted to receive indicia, a plurality of spaced ridges extending radially inwardly on at least one of the planar surfaces of said article locator, said ridges terminating short of the axis of said disk-shaped article locator device, adjacent radial ridges being connected together at their inner and outer ends so as to define borders of spaces for indicia identifying titles of articles, and characters molded on said disk-shaped locator device adjacent each of said spaces for identifying positions of articles in said holder.

4. An article locator of the character described in claim 3, wherein said disk-shaped article locator device is provided with a centrally positioned aperture, said diskshaped locator device being provided with an annular ridge adjacent the aperture for reinforcing said device and thereby preventing warping.

5. An article locator device of the character described in claim 3, wherein said locator device is molded from a non-brittle plastic material and said radially extending indicia receiving surfaces have a microscopic mat surface capable of receiving pencil and ink.

6. An article locator device of the character described in claim 5, wherein said non-brittle plastic material is high impact polystyrene.

7. An article locator device of the character described in claim 3, wherein said device is made from anodized aluminum capable of receiving pencil or ink.

8. In combination, an article holder for holding a plurality of substantially flat articles, said article holder including means to hold articles individually of each other and characters on said article holder adjacent said means, said characters identifying positions articles are held in said holder, an article locator device, said article locator device being substantially flat and having a configuration substantially similar to the configuration of the articles being held by said article holder, said article locator device also being adapted to be held by said means and removable from said article holder, said locator device having a plurality of spaced ridges thereon defining borders of indicia receiving spaces capable of receiving titles of the articles made by pencil or ink, said ridges providing an erasure guide to facilitate removal of title identifying indicia and characters on said locator device associated with each of said spaces, said characters corresponding to the characters on said article holder so as to identify position of an article having its title in the adjacent indicia receiving space of said locator device.

9. In combination, an article holder for holding a plurality of flat disk-shaped articles such as phonograph records or the like, said article holder having a plurality of grooves for individually supporting the disk-shaped articles, characters on said article holder adjacent each of said grooves, a record locator device comprising a flat disk-shaped element of substantially the same size as the disk-shaped articles supported in said article receiving grooves of said article holder, said disk-shaped element being adapted to be removably carried in one of said article receiving grooves, said disk-shaped element having radially extending indicia receiving surfaces thereon and separated by radially extending ridges, said indicia receiving surfaces being capable of receiving indicia made by pencil or ink and defining titles of the articles carried by said article holder, said ridges providing an erasure guide to facilitate changing of titles of articles provided on said indicia receiving surfaces, and characters on said diskshaped element adjacent each of the indicia receiving surfaces, said characters on said disk-shaped element corresponding to the characters on said article holder thereby enabling a person to identify a filing position for an article in said article holder.

10. A combination of the character described in claim 9, wherein said article locator device is molded of high impact polystyrene.

11. A combination of the character described in claim 9, wherein said radially extending indicia receiving surfaces of said article locator device has a microscopic mat surface capable of receiving pencil and ink and from which pencil and ink can be removed by erasure.

12. A combination of the character described in claim 9, wherein said article locator device is made of a nonbrittle plastic material and is provided with an aperture at its center, said article locator device being provided with an annular ridge adjacent its aperture for reinforcing said device and thereby preventing warping.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 796,600 McLane et a1. Aug. 8, 1905 832,954 Buehler Oct. 9, 1906 1,436,026 Ferge et al Nov. 21, 1922 1,437,608 Neely Dec. 5, 1922 2,202,682 Arberry May 28, 1940 2,719,069 Roberson Sept. 27, 1955 

